Aim: We aimed to investigate the association of estimated whole blood viscosity (WBV) with hemodynamic parameters and prognosis in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction.
Materials & methods: Total of 542 patients were included and followed-up for median 13 months.
Results: The WBV parameters had negative relationship with right atrium pressure and positive correlation with cardiac index. The WBV parameters were found to be independent predictors of composite end point (CEP) and all-cause mortality. Every one cP increases of WBV(h) and WBV(l) were associated with 17 and 1% reductions of CEP. In Kaplan-Meier analysis, patients with low WBV quartiles were found to have significantly more CEP.
Conclusion: Being an easily accessible and costless prognosticator, WBV seems to be a novel marker for determining prognosis and an emerging tool to individualize heart failure with reduced ejection fraction management.
Keywords: heart failure with reduced ejection fraction; right heart catheterization; shear rate; whole blood viscosity.